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Abstract:
Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) is a fairly mature analytical
technique which has been widely used in the fields of geochemistry and
materials science since the early 1960s. The past decade or so has seen
dramatic improvements, both theoretical and experimental, in the
accuracy with which the concentrations of light elements such as oxygen
can be measured by EPMA. This has coincided with a resurgence of
interest in mixed-valence oxides which was stimulated by the discovery
of high temperature superconductivity, and EPMA is now a vital tool for
condensed matter physicists working in this field. Stoichiometric
characterization is particularly important in the area of thin films,
and a great deal of recent work has been devoted to modifying existing
EPMA correction procedures in order to perform analyses of thin film or
layered specimens. This article reviews the progress that has been made
from a physicist's perspective, paying attention to the levels of
accuracy and precision which are now attainable, and to the advantages
and disadvantages Of EPMA in relation to other analytical techniques.
